TN makes wearing ID cards mandatory for govt staff during office hours

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday made it mandatory for its employees to wear official identity cards with photograph during working hours.
Administrative reforms department secretary C. Swarna in a circular marked to all department secretaries and district collectors said, "All government staff must carry their identity cards with them during working hours". The government order pointed out that the state has received many complaints informing that the government staff are not wearing the mandatory ID cards during working hours.

There are specific orders and norms for the government employees to follow which includes displaying if ID cards during office time, the circular read. The top official also instructed all department heads to ensure that the government workers are wearing ID cards from now on.

According to secretariat sources, the state has decided to insist on official Ids in the wake of the recent strike by the members of the Joint Action Committee of Tamil Nadu Teachers' Organisation (Jactto) and Government Employees Organisation (GeoO). The strike was called off after Madurai bench of Madras HC issued a warning.

The government staff since last year had been demanding the restoration of the old pension scheme and implementation of the recommendations of the seventh pay commission and have temporarily returned to work following the court warning and state insurance.